I have been looking at brush guards/ or grille guards recently and found some which are pretty nice. I like the sportsman by Westin. Is Westin a good company with DURABLE and long lasting products? I was a bit concerned about sir bag safety though. With a huge piece of metal hanging off the bumper does that make the a/b less effective? My last question is, over time, will the increased weight on the front cause problems of components to wear out quicker?? Or cause the suspension to soften up front or cause the bumper to bend?? thanks!!

 

I had a Westin Brush guard on my 99 pathfinder and it help up really well. It was extremely sturdy and durable. It doesn't weight all that much and over the 3 years I had it on I didn't notice any sag in the front.Go for it!

 

Does smittybilt make any decent guards? Is safety compromised?? Thanks for the help!

 

Safety is not comprimised on a Ranger. They have an inertia switch, which will deploy the airbags if a certain deceleration rate is met. As for which brand to get I really don't know they all look the same to me, except the one I have, whom I have no idea who made mine.

 

there is one at pep-boys that i'm interested in and its by westin. its either stainless or aluminum and it looks cool but its like $500 bucks! its not the rap around kind though. i think it gets bolted to the frame and i really don't think it will hurt anything but aerodynamics.

 

Unfortunately the one I like costs.....$750!!!! Ouch. I think I may wait a bit. I saw one I like a lot on somebody's truck on another page, but can't find it anymore.... Either way, i didn't think guards where THAT expensive! Even $500 is alot!

 

10-4 on that. however i do believe that the one i liked included install. it seems any accessory costs at least $200 bucks or more excluding some stuff on ebay!

 

yeah really. The only accessories I can think of that are inexpensive are like hitch covers, and bug shields. Although, even in those categories there are some really pricey things....

 

Check out the brand "Manik" They have some nice ones as well.

 

Wow. actually, i juset checked out the polished manik guard, and it is the one i wanted originally. Very high class looking, also with a top of the line price...MSRP: $1,080.45 each

 

Man prices went up...My buddy got one about 5 years ago for around $200. It was not polished but mat black ..but wow, thats a price tag!

 

$1,085? holy crap! do any of you guys remember awhile back a guy was going on about a new product he had and was trying to get some feedback from us in what we thought of it? well it was a billet third brake cover or actual light assy. can' remember but it was like $200 bucks or more and we all pretty much let him know that it was cool but way too pricey for the third brake. we never heard from him again, i think we made him sad! lol! but this goes to show you, if got $$$ to burn there are plenty of places to burn it and i could if my wife would let me!

 

Here's the big question: Do you want it for looks, or for functionality? If all you want it for is the look, go for it. If you want something that is actually going to be used for knocking things down and protecting the lower hoodline of your truck, you'll want a bumper/brushgard combo that's all welded tube steel. Every brush guard that I've ever seen that actually impacted something folded back into the hood and grille, causing more damage than what would have happened without it. A couple people have tried to pull with them too, and ended up with what looked like bow ornaments on a ship.

I very highly reccomend Smittybuilt tube bumpers. I have lifted the entire front and/or rear end of my truck (both tires) about 2' in the air using Smittybuilt bumpers and a Hi-Lift jack before, with no damage to the bumpers or truck. The Black Smittybuilt bumpers I used to have (Danger Ranger I) were about $250 each if I remember correctly. The front had the integrated hoop and the rear had a built in 2" receiver. You will pay a premium for chrome.

Although I have not tried the pre-runner style tube bumpers, I am certain that they are also fairly strong and capable of taking a beating. James Duff makes some nice ones.

 

I would like to find one that looks like the Manick, but be functional also. Knocking things down....not ususally, but more or less for bumping things. But if they cost THIS much...i think i can deal with a mangled bumper....for a while